Public Health

Insulin prices have skyrocketed in recent years. An April 2016 Journal of the American Medical Association analysis found the cost of insulin has more than tripled from 2002 to 2013—representing an average rise of $231 to $736 per patient.

Living in a polluted area as a pre-teen and teenager may have long-lasting, detrimental effects on a person’s ability to reason and problem solve, a new study suggests.

Researchers at the University of Southern California and UCLA Center for Health Policy Research tracked more than 1,300 pre-teens living in neighborhoods across Los Angeles and surrounding counties over a 12-year period.

As Sofia’s pediatrician, I couldn’t miss her mother’s overwhelming signs of postpartum depression. It’s a threat to the wellbeing of babies, their mothers and families.

Nationwide, depression affects 10 to 25 percent of all pregnant women during the perinatal period, defined as three months before pregnancy to one year after giving birth. Across California, the rate is about 20 percent, and in Los Angeles County, it’s 26 percent.

California is not adequately serving the needs of seniors with serious mental illnesses, according to a new study.

Services vary widely from county to county, the state lacks sufficient data to determine the demographics of the people served, and racial and cultural barriers are preventing people from getting needed services.

Kimberly Sandoval holds a ticket in her hand in disbelief. Her infraction: being in possession of spare bicycle parts at Santa Ana’s Civic Center, a homeless encampment of an estimated 200 people in the heart of Orange County.

In a move cheered by advocates for environmental health, an independent state advisory board has unanimously voted to list the pesticide chlorpyrifos as a chemical that can cause developmental delays in children.

New state rules about the application of pesticides on farms near rural schools and daycare facilities will take effect Jan 1., following years of campaigning by groups advocating for teachers, the environment and public health. Yet these advocates argue that the rules still don’t do enough to protect children, teachers and caregivers from potentially dangerous chemicals.